John Higgins fears Scottish snooker is in decline

THE four-time world champion claims that the sport is suffering as more and more snooker halls close around the country.

FOUR-TIME world champ John Higgins believes Scottish snooker has gone to pot – and hopes this weekend’s tournament in Motherwell can spark a revival.

No major ranking events have been held north of the border since the 2010 World Open in Glasgow as the game broadens its brand overseas.

But yesterday saw the Players Tour Championship get under way at the Ravenscraig sports facility in Motherwell and Higgins would love to see it prompt World Snooker to bring the big events back to Scotland.

He said: “I think snooker has maybe had it’s best times here.

“They’ll
always be place for snooker in Britain but just going by personal experience there’s snooker clubs shutting down all over Scotland now.

“It’s a real shame but shows there’s not the people going into these clubs to spend money.” Higgins is proud to have the three-day event held on his home patch and is hopeful it will trigger a resurgence.

He
said: “It would be a travesty if we didn’t have a tournament up here, especially with the number of great players we’ve had over the years. The facility we’ve got here at Ravenscraig is first class.

“I
was only born a mile down the road. Snooker’s got a rich heritage up here and there are some very talented young players. Hopefully they start breaking through over the next couple of years.”